With all the on and off field antics that we regularly see from other clubs, there is excellent news that Chelsea have emerged with the FA respect and fairplay award.
A friend of mine always questions our respect towards referees and opponents – whether we win, lose or draw we smile and shake hands with the opposing players – yet he gets very angry when Manchester United do not do the same.
Our players are professionals who understand that in spite of the business part of the game – it is still a game; and the spirit of sportsmanship must be upheld. whilst aggressiveness must not be taken from our game, we must show that we have no malice with any team.
It is unbecoming when you see players take what happened on the field of play back to their homes and write silly tweets about events that have happened. My pet hate is when players encourage the referee to give another player a red card – Once again, I must stress that Torres’ offence was not as bad as it was portrayed. He held back his leg when he saw that he had missed the ball, yet he was still carded. I may be wrong here, but he shouldn’t have been shown a yellow card.
Our players are very disciplined and mature, we do not just buy the best players, we ensure they are always after disciplined and respectful players. I know Drogba and Ballack, have lost their cool on occasions but there are hardly any players who would not have reacted in a different way, had they been in the same situation.
Fairplay is part of the Chelsea game – It is rare to see a chelsea coach get so upset that he refuses to shake hands with the opponent’s coach – I do hope we continue to win these awards, after all the title is not everything.
Football is a game. Let’s play fair …
Stan Blue